Model navigation constrained by classification

ABSTRACT

A method, system and computer-usable medium are disclosed for efficient searching of a semantic model of resources and resource relationships. A query is received from an application. In turn the query is processed to determine an application usage classification for the application, which is then used to reference an index of subsets of the semantic model to identify a subset of the semantic model associated with the application usage classification. The identified subset of the semantic model is then used to modify the query, which is then used as a modified query to query the semantic model. In response, a sub-graph of the semantic model corresponding to the subset of the semantic mode is received, which in turn is provided to the application.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates in general to the field of computers andsimilar technologies, and in particular to software utilized in thisfield. Still more particularly, it relates to a method, system andcomputer-usable medium for efficient searching of a semantic model ofresources and resource relationships.

Description of the Related Art

An entity-relationship (ER) model is a data model that provides asystematic way of describing the data or information aspects of abusiness domain or its process requirements. The business domain, or itsprocess requirements, is modeled as entities (i.e., things or resources)that are characterized by various attributes (i.e., characteristics orproperties). These entities are linked to one another by relationshipsthat express the dependencies and requirements between them. Diagramscreated to graphically represent these entities, attributes, andrelationships are referred to as entity-relationship diagrams. A commonneed in information systems is to search through a collection of theseentities in a model for those entities with predetermined attributes orrelationships.

Such information models are often used in software applications tocapture relevant information about entities. The modeled entities,therefore, can be diverse and include physical assets, operations,organizations, metadata, or other related items. Relationships betweenthose entities are equally diverse as they can represent a very broadset of associations. As an example, a city water infrastructure systemmay be modeled to show entities such as pipes, valves, flow meters,switches, regulators, etc. and their relationship to one another. Theserelationships may include physical connections, device types ormanufacturer, purchase and installation dates, supplier information, andinstallation teams or contractors. Other relationships may includegeospatial mapping within other city infrastructures, such as buildings,roads, sidewalks, subways, failure incidents, maintenance records, andso forth.

It is also typical to represent information models as graphs, wherenodes represent the modeled entities and edges between nodes represent apredetermined relationship. With this representation of a domain, themodel can be navigated in un-prescribed ways to discover new or extendedrelationships between entities and entity associations. Suchnewly-discovered information can often assist in converting data intomeaningful insights that can lead to optimization of business operationsor processes. As a result, it may be advantageous to createinformational models that are very complete and capture as many entitiesand relationships as possible in order to provide the basis fordiscovering previously unrealized associations.

However, achieving completeness in an information model can also lead toincreased complexity, which in turn can create challenges in navigatingthe model when attempting to discover the paths that are most likely toprovide meaningful relationships. Generally, this refinement orfiltering is achieved by adding a series of “where” clauses, orfunctional equivalents, to model queries implemented model navigation.However, this approach complicates model navigation as the user orapplication needs to know which relationships to include or exclude. Asan alternative, filtering may be done at the data analysis layer suchthat identified relationships are not prioritized at the time of graphinterrogation, but instead, only after the data is retrieved. Thisapproach is likewise not optimal, as more data needs to be moved fromthe model to the interrogating application and the logic of thatrefinement is moved as an application responsibility, or to the user ifunqualified data is represented for their consideration.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A method, system and computer-usable medium are disclosed for efficientsearching of a semantic model of resources and resource relationships.In various embodiments, a query is received from an application. Inturn, the query is processed to determine an application usageclassification for the application, which is then used to reference anindex of subsets of the semantic model to identify a subset of thesemantic model associated with the application usage classification. Theidentified subset of the semantic model is then used to modify thequery, which is then used as a modified query to query the semanticmodel. In response to using the modified query, a sub-graph of thesemantic model corresponding to the subset of the semantic mode isreceived, which in turn is provided to the application.

In various embodiments, the semantic model is an entity-relationshipmodel and the index is a topic map. In these embodiments, theapplication usage classification includes at least one application usageattribute. In various embodiments, the application usage attribute mayinclude the application's vertical, role, or business responsibility. Incertain embodiments, the usage attribute defines the contextual use ofthe application.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention may be better understood, and its numerousobjects, features and advantages made apparent to those skilled in theart by referencing the accompanying drawings. The use of the samereference number throughout the several figures designates a like orsimilar element.

FIG. 1 depicts an exemplary client computer in which the presentinvention may be implemented;

FIG. 2 is a simplified graphical depiction of an entity relationshipmodel (ERM);

FIG. 3 is a simplified graphical depiction of a topic map;

FIG. 4 is a simplified block diagram of a topic map implemented toprovide a sub-graph of an ERM to an associated application;

FIG. 5 is simplified block diagram of the operation of a modelmanagement system;

FIG. 6 is a generalized flowchart of the performance of applicationusage classification mapping operations; and

FIG. 7 is a generalized flowchart of the performance of constrained ERMnavigation operations.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

A method, system and computer-usable medium are disclosed for efficientsearching of a semantic model of resources and resource relationships.The present invention may be a system, a method, and/or a computerprogram product. The computer program product may include a computerreadable storage medium (or media) having computer readable programinstructions thereon for causing a processor to carry out aspects of thepresent invention.

The computer readable storage medium can be a tangible device that canretain and store instructions for use by an instruction executiondevice. The computer readable storage medium may be, for example, but isnot limited to, an electronic storage device, a magnetic storage device,an optical storage device, an electromagnetic storage device, asemiconductor storage device, or any suitable combination of theforegoing. A non-exhaustive list of more specific examples of thecomputer readable storage medium includes the following: a portablecomputer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), aread-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROMor Flash memory), a static random access memory (SRAM), a portablecompact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), a digital versatile disk (DVD),a memory stick, a floppy disk, a mechanically encoded device such aspunch-cards or raised structures in a groove having instructionsrecorded thereon, and any suitable combination of the foregoing. Acomputer readable storage medium, as used herein, is not to be construedas being transitory signals per se, such as radio waves or other freelypropagating electromagnetic waves, electromagnetic waves propagatingthrough a waveguide or other transmission media (e.g., light pulsespassing through a fiber-optic cable), or electrical signals transmittedthrough a wire.

Computer readable program instructions described herein can bedownloaded to respective computing/processing devices from a computerreadable storage medium or to an external computer or external storagedevice via a network, for example, the Internet, a local area network, awide area network and/or a wireless network. The network may comprisecopper transmission cables, optical transmission fibers, wirelesstransmission, routers, firewalls, switches, gateway computers and/oredge servers. A network adapter card or network interface in eachcomputing/processing device receives computer readable programinstructions from the network and forwards the computer readable programinstructions for storage in a computer readable storage medium withinthe respective computing/processing device.

Computer readable program instructions for carrying out operations ofthe present invention may be assembler instructions,instruction-set-architecture (ISA) instructions, machine instructions,machine dependent instructions, microcode, firmware instructions,state-setting data, or either source code or object code written in anycombination of one or more programming languages, including an objectoriented programming language such as Smalltalk, C++ or the like, andconventional procedural programming languages, such as the “C”programming language or similar programming languages. The computerreadable program instructions may execute entirely on the user'scomputer, partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alone softwarepackage, partly on the user's computer and partly on a remote computeror entirely on the remote computer or server. In the latter scenario,the remote computer may be connected to the user's computer through anytype of network, including a local area network (LAN) or a wide areanetwork (WAN), or the connection may be made to an external computer(for example, through the Internet using an Internet Service Provider).In some embodiments, electronic circuitry including, for example,programmable logic circuitry, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGA), orprogrammable logic arrays (PLA) may execute the computer readableprogram instructions by utilizing state information of the computerreadable program instructions to personalize the electronic circuitry,in order to perform aspects of the present invention.

Aspects of the present invention are described herein with reference toflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods, apparatus(systems), and computer program products according to embodiments of theinvention. It will be understood that each block of the flowchartillustrations and/or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in theflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, can be implemented bycomputer readable program instructions.

These computer readable program instructions may be provided to aprocessor of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, orother programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, suchthat the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computeror other programmable data processing apparatus, create means forimplementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or blockdiagram block or blocks. These computer readable program instructionsmay also be stored in a computer readable storage medium that can directa computer, a programmable data processing apparatus, and/or otherdevices to function in a particular manner, such that the computerreadable storage medium having instructions stored therein comprises anarticle of manufacture including instructions which implement aspects ofthe function/act specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram blockor blocks.

The computer readable program instructions may also be loaded onto acomputer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other deviceto cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer,other programmable apparatus or other device to produce a computerimplemented process, such that the instructions which execute on thecomputer, other programmable apparatus, or other device implement thefunctions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block orblocks.

The flowchart and block diagrams in the Figures illustrate thearchitecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementationsof systems, methods, and computer program products according to variousembodiments of the present invention. In this regard, each block in theflowchart or block diagrams may represent a module, segment, or portionof instructions, which comprises one or more executable instructions forimplementing the specified logical function(s). In some alternativeimplementations, the functions noted in the block may occur out of theorder noted in the figures. For example, two blocks shown in successionmay, in fact, be executed substantially concurrently, or the blocks maysometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon thefunctionality involved. It will also be noted that each block of theblock diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, and combinations of blocksin the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, can be implementedby special purpose hardware-based systems that perform the specifiedfunctions or acts or carry out combinations of special purpose hardwareand computer instructions.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an exemplary client computer 102 in whichthe present invention may be utilized. Client computer 102 includes aprocessor unit 104 that is coupled to a system bus 106. A video adapter108, which controls a display 110, is also coupled to system bus 106.System bus 106 is coupled via a bus bridge 112 to an Input/Output (I/O)bus 114. An I/O interface 116 is coupled to I/O bus 114. The I/Ointerface 116 affords communication with various I/O devices, includinga keyboard 118, a mouse 120, a Compact Disk-Read Only Memory (CD-ROM)drive 122, a floppy disk drive 124, and a flash drive memory 126. Theformat of the ports connected to I/O interface 116 may be any known tothose skilled in the art of computer architecture, including but notlimited to Universal Serial Bus (USB) ports.

Client computer 102 is able to communicate with a service providerserver 152 via a network 128 using a network interface 130, which iscoupled to system bus 106. Network 128 may be an external network suchas the Internet, or an internal network such as an Ethernet Network or aVirtual Private Network (VPN). Using network 128, client computer 102 isable to use the present invention to access service provider server 152.

A hard drive interface 132 is also coupled to system bus 106. Hard driveinterface 132 interfaces with a hard drive 134. In a preferredembodiment, hard drive 134 populates a system memory 136, which is alsocoupled to system bus 106. Data that populates system memory 136includes the client computer's 102 operating system (OS) 138 andsoftware programs 144.

OS 138 includes a shell 140 for providing transparent user access toresources such as software programs 144. Generally, shell 140 is aprogram that provides an interpreter and an interface between the userand the operating system. More specifically, shell 140 executes commandsthat are entered into a command line user interface or from a file.Thus, shell 140 (as it is called in UNIX®), also called a commandprocessor in Windows®, is generally the highest level of the operatingsystem software hierarchy and serves as a command interpreter. The shellprovides a system prompt, interprets commands entered by keyboard,mouse, or other user input media, and sends the interpreted command(s)to the appropriate lower levels of the operating system (e.g., a kernel142) for processing. While shell 140 generally is a text-based,line-oriented user interface, the present invention can also supportother user interface modes, such as graphical, voice, gestural, etc.

As depicted, OS 138 also includes kernel 142, which includes lowerlevels of functionality for OS 138, including essential servicesrequired by other parts of OS 138 and software programs 144, includingmemory management, process and task management, disk management, andmouse and keyboard management. Software programs 144 may include abrowser 146 and email client 148. Browser 146 includes program modulesand instructions enabling a World Wide Web (WWW) client (i.e., clientcomputer 102) to send and receive network messages to the Internet usingHyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP) messaging, thus enablingcommunication with service provider server 152. In various embodiments,software programs 144 may also include a model management system 150. Inthese and other embodiments, the model management system 150 includescode for implementing the processes described hereinbelow. In oneembodiment, client computer 102 is able to download the model managementsystem 150 from a service provider server 152.

The hardware elements depicted in client computer 102 are not intendedto be exhaustive, but rather are representative to highlight componentsused by the present invention. For instance, client computer 102 mayinclude alternate memory storage devices such as magnetic cassettes,Digital Versatile Disks (DVDs), Bernoulli cartridges, and the like.These and other variations are intended to be within the spirit, scopeand intent of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a simplified graphical depiction of an entity-relationshipmodel (ERM) implemented in accordance with an embodiment of theinvention. As used herein, an ERM 200 broadly refers to a data modelthat provides an abstract and conceptual representation of data.Accordingly, it is common to use entity-relationship modeling to producea conceptual schema or semantic data model of a system, and itsrequirements, in a top-down manner.

Skilled practitioners of the art will be aware that such conceptualschemas and semantic data models are often used to provide a systematicway of describing the data or information aspects of a business domain,its process requirements, or both. These information aspects are modeledas entities (i.e., things or resources) that are characterized byvarious attributes (i.e., characteristics or properties). In turn, theseentities are linked to one another by relationships that express theirrespective dependencies and requirements. Diagrams created tographically represent these entities, attributes, and relationships aregenerally referred to as an entity-relationship diagram (ERD).

As an example, an ERM 200 can be used to describe physical systems, suchas a water delivery system in a metropolitan area, which typicallyinvolves the use of various management systems. To extend the example,there are Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) systems thatcontrol and store instrumentation readings from equipment in the field.There are also Enterprise Asset Management (EAM) systems to manage theinventory and periodic servicing of equipment in the field. Likewise, aCustomer Relationship Management (CRM) system provides informationconcerning customer accounts. For instance, a CRM system for a watercompany may list households, their corresponding water meteridentifiers, and associated water usage. Likewise, a GeographicInformation Systems (GIS) provides spatial mapping of assets andnetworks, such as valves, meters and pipelines.

Those of skill in the art will be aware that each of these systemsprovides logical relationship information relevant to its particulardomain. For example, the modeled entities may include physical assets,operations, organizations, metadata, or other related items.Relationships between those entities are equally diverse as they canrepresent a very broad set of associations. To continue the precedingexample, a water delivery system may be modeled to show entities such aspipes, valves, flow meters, switches, regulators, etc. and theirrelationship to one another.

These relationships may include physical connections, device types ormanufacturer, purchase and installation dates, supplier information, andinstallation teams or contractors. Other relationships may includegeospatial mapping within other city infrastructures, such as buildings,roads, sidewalks, subways, failure incidents, maintenance records, andso forth. To further the example, a set of pressure valves within thewater delivery system may belong to a particular pressure managementzone. As a result, the logical and abstract relationships provided by anERM 200 can provide insight as to whether a sewer blockage at aparticular location would have an adverse impact to water flowing atsome distance away.

However, identifying previously unrealized relationships andassociations between entities can prove challenging when navigating themodel, especially when the model is complex and is used to support amultitude of applications. Identifying such relationships andassociations is typically achieved by adding a series of “where”clauses, or functional equivalents, to model queries during navigationof the model. However, this approach complicates navigation of the modelas the user or application needs to know which relationships to includeor exclude. As an alternative, filtering may be done at the dataanalysis layer such that identified relationships are not prioritized atthe time of graph interrogation, but instead, only after the data isretrieved. This approach is likewise not optimal, as more data needs tobe moved from the model to the interrogating application for refinement.Furthermore, the logic needed to refine that data is likewise moved tothe application, or to the user, if unqualified data is represented fortheir consideration.

FIG. 3 is a simplified graphical depiction of a topic map implemented inaccordance with an embodiment of the invention. As used herein, a topicmap 300 broadly refers to a standard for the representation andinterchange of knowledge. Skilled practitioners of the art will befamiliar with topic maps 300, which facilitate the location ofinformation through the implementation of a meta-model. Such meta-modelsallow topics, associations, and occurrences to be typed, where the typesare defined by the one or more creators of the topic map 300. Thedefinitions of allowed types are in turn used to provide the ontology ofthe topic map 300.

In various embodiments, a topic map 300 is implemented to map a set ofapplication usage classifications 302 ‘A’ through ‘D’ to a set of ERMsubsets 304 ‘1’ through ‘10’. As used herein, an application usageclassification broadly refers to a set of application usage attributesthat defines the contextual use of an application. For example, invarious embodiments, these application usage attributes may include theapplications vertical, role or business responsibility. As used herein,an application usage attribute of “vertical” broadly refers to avertical market or industry associated with a particular application. Asan example, the associated vertical market or industry may be waterutilities. As likewise used herein, an application usage attribute of“role” broadly refers to an organization or individual that would usethe application. To continue the preceding example, the role of a waterutility application may be its use by a water utility's pipelinemanagement or billing departments.

Likewise, as used herein, an application usage attribute of “businessresponsibility” broadly refers to the application's intended businesspurpose. To further the preceding example, one water utility applicationmay be used by a water utility's pipeline management department tomonitor the flow of water across a network of pipes, while another maybe used by a water utility's billing department to collect water usagemetric and generate an associated bill. Likewise, yet another waterutility application may be used to schedule periodic maintenance ofvalves throughout a pipeline network, while yet still another may beused to track associated pipeline maintenance costs. In certainembodiments, the application usage classification may be defined byother application usage attributes. Those of skill in the art willrecognize that many such application usage attributes are possible andthe foregoing is not intended to limit the spirit, scope or intent ofthe invention.

As likewise used herein, an ERM subset broadly refers to a predeterminedset of entities within an ERM, such as the ERM 200 depicted in FIG. 2,and the associated relationships that represent their respectivedependencies and requirements. More particularly, as shown in FIG. 3,the topic map 300 represents the mapping of application usageclassification ‘A’ to ERM subsets ‘1’, ‘2’, ‘3’ and ‘8’, whileapplication usage classification ‘B’ is mapped to ERM subsets ‘1’, ‘3’,‘4’ and ‘6’. Likewise, application usage classification ‘C’ is mapped toERM subsets ‘3’, ‘4’, ‘6’ and ‘7’, while application usageclassification ‘D’ is mapped to ERM subsets ‘5’, ‘7’, ‘8’, ‘9’ and ‘10’.

Skilled practitioners of the art will be aware that applications thatuse information models to represent relationships between variousentities typically provide an interface to query the model. However,such interfaces generally expect either the application developer, orthe user, to be responsible for prioritizing and constraining navigationof the model in a way that is consistent with the usage of theapplication. For example, a well-constructed meta-model may containinformation about a city's water distribution network that includesassets such as pipes, valves, pumps, pressure sensors and so forth.Additionally, it may also contain interrelationship information relatedto maintenance data, asset manufacturer, device serial-number-leveldata, costing information, invoice references, and installation crewinformation.

While the availability of these extended relationships is valuable, itcan also place a corresponding development burden on the applicationprogrammer. Likewise, the user of an application may be flooded withextraneous information that adds little value. These issues areaddressed in various embodiments by prioritizing and constrainingtraversal of the model according to each application's associated usageclassifications without additional coding effort. In these and otherembodiments, the traversal of the model is constrained to a sub-graph ofthe ERM that is defined by those entity relationships referenced by anapplication usage classification associated with the queryingapplication.

FIG. 4 is a simplified block diagram of a topic map implemented inaccordance with an embodiment of the invention to provide a sub-graph ofan entity model-relationship model (ERM) to an associated application.In various embodiments, an application usage classification isgenerated, its related application usage attributes defined as describedin greater detail herein, and then assigned to a target application. Incertain embodiments, a model management system 150 is implemented togenerate the application usage classifications and to define theirrelated application usage attributes. The particular method by which theapplication usage classification is generated and its relatedapplication usage attributes are defined is a matter of design choice.

In certain embodiments, the application usage classifications may relateto various uses of the application, such as asset maintenance, workflowoptimization, capital equipment optimization, infrastructure usage, andso forth. As an example, an ERM 200 may be used to describe physicalsystems, such as a water delivery system in a metropolitan area, whichmay involve the use of various applications. To extend the example, aSupervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) 402 application may beused to control and store instrumentation readings from equipment in thefield. Likewise, an Enterprise Asset Management (EAM) 404 applicationmay be used to manage the inventory and periodic servicing of equipmentin the field. To continue the example, a Customer RelationshipManagement (CRM) 406 application may be used to provide informationconcerning customer accounts. For instance, a CRM 406 application for awater company may list households, their corresponding water meteridentifiers, and associated water usage. Likewise, a GeographicInformation Systems (GIS) 408 application may be used to provide spatialmapping of assets and networks, such as valves, meters and pipelines.

Referring now to FIG. 4, application usage classification mappingoperations are initiated by the selection of a target application, suchas the SCADA 402, EAM 404, CRM 406, or GIS 408 application. Anapplication usage classification is generated, its related applicationusage attributes defined as described in greater detail herein, and thenassigned to the target application. The ERM 200 is then processed toidentify entity relationships, and their related entities, thatcorrespond to the application usage classification attributes that weredefined for the application usage classification.

In one embodiment, the identification process is performed using manualapproaches. In another embodiment, the identification process isperformed using automated approaches familiar to those of skill in theart. In yet another embodiment, the identification processed isperformed using a combination of manual and automated approaches. Theparticular method by which the identification process is performed is amatter of design choice. Skilled practitioners of the art will recognizethat there are many ways the identification process may be performed andthe foregoing is not intended to limit the spirit, scope or intent ofthe invention.

The identified entity relationships, and their related entities, arethen processed to generate a subset of the ERM 200, described in greaterdetail herein. The method by which the subset of the ERM 200 isgenerated is a matter of design choice. The resulting subset of the ERM200 is then associated with the application usage classification in thetopic map 300. In various embodiments, the model management system 150is implemented to associate the subset of the ERM 200 with theapplication usage classification in the topic map 300.

In certain embodiments, mapping operations familiar to those of skill inthe art are performed to associate the subset of the ERM 200 with theapplication usage classification in the topic map 300. In variousembodiments, indexing operations familiar to those of skill in the artare performed to associate the subset of the ERM 200 with theapplication usage classification in the topic map. In certainembodiments, a combination of mapping and indexing operations areperformed to associate the subset of the ERM 200 with the applicationusage classification in the topic map. The particular method by whichthe associating or indexing operations are performed is a matter ofdesign choice.

In various embodiments, constrained navigation of the ERM 200 isinitiated by the selection of a target application, such as the SCADA402, EAM 404, CRM 406, or GIS 408 application, followed by thegeneration of an associated model query by the selected application. Inone embodiment, the model query is automatically generated by theselected application. In another embodiment, the model query isgenerated in response to user input being received by the selectedapplication. The resulting model query is then submitted to the ERM 200for processing.

In various embodiments, the model query is intercepted by the modelmanagement system 150 and processed to determine the application usageclassification associated with the querying application. The method bywhich the application usage classification is determined is a matter ofdesign choice. As an example, the model query may have been generated bya water utility application used by a water utility's billing departmentto collect water usage metrics and generate an associated bill. In thisexample, the application may have a unique identifier, such as a productname, which is passed as part of the model query to the model managementsystem 150. To continue the example, the model management system 150 maythen parse the model query to extract the application's uniqueidentifier and then use it to identify its associated application usageclassification. Those of skill in the art will recognize that many suchexamples are possible and the foregoing is not intended to limit thespirit, scope or intent of the invention.

The model management system 150 then references the topic map 300 toidentify the subset of the ERM 200 that corresponds to the applicationusage classification. The identified subset of the ERM 200 is then usedby the model management system 150 to modify the model query, which isthen used as a modified query to query the ERM 200. In response to usingthe modified query, a sub-graph of the ERM 200 corresponding to thesubset of the ERM 200 is received. The resulting sub-graph is thenprovided to the querying application. For example, ERM sub-graphs 412,414, 416 and 418 may be respectively provided by the model managementsystem 150 to the SCADA 402, EAM 404, CRM 406, or GIS 408 applications.

Furthermore, the ERM sub-graphs 412, 414, 416 and 418 respectivelyprovided to the SCADA 402, EAM 404, CRM 406, or GIS 408 applications asa result of otherwise unqualified model queries will only include datathat is contextually-relevant to the querying application. Moreover,interrogation of the ERM 200 associated with various operationsperformed by the SCADA 402, EAM 404, CRM 406, or GIS 408 applicationsare automatically constrained without the need of delegating themechanics of data filtering to either the user or the application. As aresult, the entities within the ERM 200 selected by a query aredetermined according to an established context associated with thequerying application.

FIG. 5 is simplified block diagram of the operation of a modelmanagement system implemented in accordance with an embodiment of theinvention. In various embodiments, an application usage classificationis generated, its related application usage attributes defined asdescribed in greater detail herein, and then assigned to a targetapplication, such as applications ‘1’ through ‘n’ 514. In certainembodiments, a model management system 150 is implemented to generatethe application usage classifications and to define their relatedapplication usage attributes. The particular method by which theapplication usage classification is generated and its relatedapplication usage attributes are defined is a matter of design choice.

In various embodiments, the applications ‘1’ through ‘n’ 514 areimplemented on a user device 504 associated with a user 502. As usedherein, a user device 504 refers to an information processing systemsuch as a personal computer, a laptop computer, a tablet computer, apersonal digital assistant (PDA), a smart phone, a mobile telephone, orother device that is capable of communicating and processing data. Invarious embodiments, the user device 504 is used to exchange informationbetween the user 502 and an information management system 102 throughthe use of a network 128. In certain embodiments, the informationmanagement system 102 includes a model management system 150 andrepositories of topic map data 524 and entity relationship model (ERM)data 522.

In various embodiments, the network 128 may be a public network, such asthe Internet, a physical private network, a virtual private network(VPN), or any combination thereof. In certain embodiments, the network228 may be a wireless network, including a personal area network (PAN),based on technologies such as Bluetooth or Ultra Wideband (UWB). Invarious embodiments, the wireless network may include a wireless localarea network (WLAN), based on variations of the IEEE 802.11specification, often referred to as WiFi. In certain embodiments, thewireless network may include a wireless wide area network (WWAN) basedon an industry standard including two and a half generation (2.5G)wireless technologies such as global system for mobile communications(GPRS) and enhanced data rates for GSM evolution (EDGE). In variousembodiments, the wireless network may include WWANs based on existingthird generation (3G) wireless technologies including universal mobiletelecommunications system (UMTS) and wideband code division multipleaccess (W-CDMA).

Other embodiments may include the implementation of other 3Gtechnologies, including evolution-data optimized (EVDO), IEEE 802.16(WiMAX), wireless broadband (WiBro), high-speed downlink packet access(HSDPA), high-speed uplink packet access (HSUPA), and emerging fourthgeneration (4G) wireless technologies. Skilled practitioners of the artwill realize that many such embodiments are possible and the foregoingis not intended to limit the spirit, scope or intent of the invention.

Referring now to FIG. 5, application usage classification mappingoperations are initiated by the selection of a target application, suchas applications ‘1’ through ‘n’ 514. An application usage classificationis generated, its related application usage attributes defined asdescribed in greater detail herein, and then assigned to the targetapplication, such as applications ‘1’ through ‘n’ 514. In turn, ERM datastored in the repository of ERM data 522 is processed to identify entityrelationships, and their related entities, that correspond to theapplication usage classification attributes that were defined for theapplication usage classification.

The identified entity relationships, and their related entities, arethen processed to generate a subset of the ERM, described in greaterdetail herein. The method by which the subset of the ERM is generated isa matter of design choice. The resulting subset of the ERM is thenassociated with the application usage classification in a topic map, aslikewise described in greater detail herein. In certain embodiments, thetopic map is stored in the repository of topic map data 524. In variousembodiments, the model management system 150 is implemented to associatethe subset of the ERM with the application usage classification in thetopic map. In certain embodiments, mapping operations familiar to thoseof skill in the art are performed to associate the subset of the ERMwith the application usage classification in the topic map.

In various embodiments, constrained navigation of the ERM is initiatedby the selection of a target application, such as applications ‘1’through ‘n’ 514, followed by the generation of an associated model queryby the selected application. In one embodiment, the model query isautomatically generated by the selected application. In anotherembodiment, the model query is generated in response to a user 502provided user input to the selected application. The resulting modelquery is then submitted by the querying application to the ERM forprocessing.

In various embodiments, the model query is intercepted by the modelmanagement system 150 and processed to determine the application usageclassification associated with the querying application. The modelmanagement system 150 then references the repository of topic map data524 to identify the subset of the ERM that corresponds to theapplication usage classification. The identified subset of the ERM isthen used by the model management system 150 to modify the model query,which is then submitted to the ERM as a modified query. In variousembodiments, the entities and entity relationships corresponding to thesubset of the ERM is stored in the repository of ERM data 522.

In response to using the modified query, a sub-graph of the ERMcorresponding to the subset of the ERM is received, which is thenprovided to the querying application. For example, ERM sub-graphs ‘1’through ‘n’ 516 may be respectively provided by the model managementsystem 150 to applications ‘1’ through ‘n’ 514. In one embodiment, theERM sub-graphs ‘1’ through ‘n’ 516 are displayed within a user interface(UI) window 512 associated with a user device 504.

FIG. 6 is a generalized flowchart of application usage classificationmapping operations performed in accordance with an embodiment of theinvention. In this embodiment, application usage classification mappingoperations are begun in step 602, followed by the selection of a targetapplication in step 604. Then, in step 606, an application usageclassification is generated, its related application usage attributesdefined as described in greater detail herein, and then assigned to thetarget application. A target entity-relationship model (ERM) is selectedin step 608, followed by processing the selected ERM in step 610 toidentify entity relationships, and their related entities, thatcorrespond to the application usage classification attributes that weredefined in step 606.

The identified entity relationships, and their related entities, arethen processed in step 612 to generate a subset of the ERM, described ingreater detail herein. The method by which the subset of the ERM isgenerated is a matter of design choice. Then, in step 614, the resultingsubset of the ERM is associated with the application usageclassification in a topic map, as described in greater detail herein. Adetermination is then made in step 616 whether to end application usageclassification mapping operations. If not, then the process iscontinued, proceeding with step 604. Otherwise, application usageclassification mapping operations ended in step 618.

FIG. 7 is a generalized flowchart of constrained entity-relationshipmodel (ERM) navigation operations performed in accordance with anembodiment of the invention. In this embodiment, constrained ERMnavigation operations are begun in step 702, followed by the selectionof a target application in step 704 and a target ERM in Step 706. Then,in step 708, a model query for the target ERM is generated by theselected application, which is then submitted to the target ERM by thequerying application in step 710.

The model query is then intercepted in step 712 and the applicationusage classification associated with the querying application isdetermined. In various embodiments, a model management system, describedin greater detail herein, is implemented to intercept the model queryand determine the application usage classification associated with thequerying application. In these embodiments, the method by which themodel query is intercepted, and the application usage classification isdetermined, is matter of design choice.

A topic map, described in greater detail herein, is referenced in step714 to identify the subset of the ERM subsets that corresponds to theapplication usage classification. The identified subset of the ERMsubsets is then used in step 716 to modify the query, which is then usedas a modified query to query the target ERM in step 718. In variousembodiments, a model management system, described in greater detailherein, is implemented to first reference the topic map to identify thesubset of the ERM and then use the identified subset of the ERM tomodify the query. In certain embodiments, a model management system islikewise implemented to use the modified query to query the target ERM.In these embodiments, the method by which the model management systemidentifies the subset of the ERM, uses it to modify the query, and thenuses the modified query to query the target ERM, is a matter of designchoice.

A sub-graph of the ERM, corresponding to the subset of the ERM, is thenreceived from the target ERM in step 720, which is then provided to thequerying application in step 722. A determination is then made in step724 whether to end constrained ERM navigation operations. If not, thenthe process is continued, proceeding with step 704. Otherwise,constrained ERM navigation operations are ended in step 726.

Although the present invention has been described in detail, it shouldbe understood that various changes, substitutions and alterations can bemade hereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the inventionas defined by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system comprising: a processor; a data buscoupled to the processor; and a computer-usable medium embodyingcomputer program code, the computer-usable medium being coupled to thedata bus, the computer program code used for constrainedentity-relationship model navigation of a semantic model of resourcesand resource relationships within a model management environment, themodel management environment comprising a model management systemexecuting on an information management system, a user device executingan application and a network, the model management system and the userdevice communicating via the network, and comprising instructionsexecutable by the processor and configured for: submitting a model queryfrom a querying application to the information management system via thenetwork; intercepting the model query via the model management system;processing the intercepted query via the model management system todetermine an application usage classification for the queryingapplication; referencing a topic map of the semantic model to identify asubset of the semantic model associated with the application usageclassification, the semantic model comprising an entity-relationshipmodel and the subset of the semantic model comprising a sub-graph of theentity-relationship model; using the subset of the semantic model tomodify the query; using the modified query to query theentity-relationship model of the semantic model; receiving the sub-graphof the entity-relationship model corresponding to the subset of thesemantic model in response to using the modified query; providing thesub-graph of the entity-relationship model to the querying application;and wherein the constrained entity-relationship model navigationautomatically constrains navigation of the semantic model without a needfor delegating mechanics of data filtering to a user or the queryingapplication.
 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the semantic modelcontains information on resources and resource relationships organizedaccording to application usage classifications.
 3. The system of claim1, wherein the application usage classification comprises at least oneapplication usage attribute that is a member of the set of: a vertical;a role; and a business responsibility.
 4. The system of claim 3, whereinthe at least one application usage attribute defines the contextual useof the application.
 5. A non-transitory, computer-readable storagemedium embodying computer program code for efficient searching of asemantic model of resources and resource relationships within a modelmanagement environment, the model management environment comprising amodel management system executing on an information management system, auser device executing an application and a network, the model managementsystem and the user device communicating via the network, the computerprogram code comprising computer executable instructions configured for:submitting a model query from a querying application to the informationmanagement system via the network; intercepting the model query via themodel management system; processing the intercepted query via the modelmanagement system to determine an application usage classification forthe querying application; referencing a topic map of the semantic modelto identify a subset of the semantic model associated with theapplication usage classification, the semantic model comprising anentity-relationship model and the subset of the semantic modelcomprising a sub-graph of the entity-relationship model; using thesubset of the semantic model to modify the query; using the modifiedquery to query the entity-relationship model of the semantic model;receiving a sub-graph of the semantic model corresponding to the subsetof the semantic model in response to using the modified query; and,providing the sub-graph of the entity-relationship model to the queryingapplication; and wherein the constrained entity-relationship modelnavigation automatically constrains navigation of the semantic modelwithout a need for delegating mechanics of data filtering to a user orthe querying application.
 6. The non-transitory, computer-readablestorage medium of claim 5, wherein the semantic model containsinformation on resources and resource relationships organized accordingto application usage classifications.
 7. The non-transitory,computer-readable storage medium of claim 5, wherein the applicationusage classification comprises at least one application usage attributethat is a member of the set of: a vertical; a role; and a businessresponsibility.
 8. The non-transitory, computer-readable storage mediumof claim 7, wherein the at least one application usage attribute definesthe contextual use of the application.
 9. The non-transitory,computer-readable storage medium of claim 5, wherein the computerexecutable instructions are deployable to a client system from a serversystem at a remote location.
 10. The non-transitory, computer-readablestorage medium of claim 5, wherein the computer executable instructionsare provided by a service provider to a user on an on-demand basis. 11.A system comprising: a processor; a data bus coupled to the processor;and a computer-usable medium embodying computer program code, thecomputer-usable medium being coupled to the data bus, the computerprogram code used for constrained entity-relationship model navigationof a semantic model of resources and resource relationships within amodel management environment, the model management environmentcomprising a model management system executing on an informationmanagement system, a user device executing an application and a network,the model management system and the user device communicating via thenetwork, and comprising instructions executable by the processor andconfigured for: submitting a model query from a querying application tothe information management system via the network; intercepting themodel query via the model management system; processing the interceptedquery via the model management system to determine an application usageclassification for the querying application, the application usageclassification comprising a set of application usage attributes thatdefine a contextual use of an application; referencing topic map of thesemantic model to identify a subset of the semantic model associatedwith the application usage classification, the semantic model comprisingan entity-relationship model and the subset of the semantic modelcomprising a sub-graph of the entity-relationship model; using thesubset of the semantic model to modify the query; using the modifiedquery to query the entity-relationship model of the semantic model;receiving the sub-graph of the entity-relationship model correspondingto the subset of the semantic model in response to using the modifiedquery; and providing the sub-graph of the entity relationship model tothe querying application.
 12. The system of claim 11, wherein the set ofapplication usage attributes comprise at least one application usageattribute that is a member of the set of: a vertical application usageattribute, the vertical application usage attribute referring to avertical market associated with the application; a role applicationusage attribute, the role application usage attribute referring to anindividual that would use the application; and a business responsibilityusage attribute, the business responsibility usage attribute referringto an intended business purpose of the application.